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Back The Cottage Save as PDF
Chapters (82)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. ONE
  4. TWO
  5. THREE
  6. FOUR
  7. FIVE
  8. SIX
  9. SEVEN
  10. EIGHT
  11. NINE
  12. TEN
  13. ELEVEN
  14. TWELVE
  15. THIRTEEN
  16. FOURTEEN
  17. FIFTEEN
  18. SIXTEEN
  19. SEVENTEEN
  20. EIGHTEEN
  21. NINETEEN
  22. TWENTY
  23. TWENTY-ONE
  24. TWENTY-TWO
  25. TWENTY-THREE
  26. TWENTY-FOUR
  27. TWENTY-FIVE
  28. TWENTY-SIX
  29. TWENTY-SEVEN
  30. TWENTY-EIGHT
  31. TWENTY-NINE
  32. THIRTY
  33. THIRTY-ONE
  34. THIRTY-TWO
  35. THIRTY-THREE
  36. THIRTY-FOUR
  37. THIRTY-FIVE
  38. THIRTY-SIX
  39. THIRTY-SEVEN
  40. THIRTY-EIGHT
  41. THIRTY-NINE
  42. FORTY
  43. FORTY-ONE
  44. FORTY-TWO
  45. FORTY-THREE
  46. FORTY-FOUR
  47. FORTY-FIVE
  48. FORTY-SIX
  49. FORTY-SEVEN
  50. FORTY-EIGHT
  51. FORTY-NINE
  52. FIFTY
  53. FIFTY-ONE
  54. FIFTY-TWO
  55. FIFTY-THREE
  56. FIFTY-FOUR
  57. FIFTY-FIVE
  58. FIFTY-SIX
  59. FIFTY-SEVEN
  60. FIFTY-EIGHT
  61. FIFTY-NINE
  62. SIXTY
  63. SIXTY-ONE
  64. SIXTY-TWO
  65. SIXTY-THREE
  66. SIXTY-FOUR
  67. SIXTY-FIVE
  68. SIXTY-SIX
  69. SIXTY-SEVEN
  70. SIXTY-EIGHT
  71. SIXTY-NINE
  72. SEVENTY
  73. SEVENTY-ONE
  74. SEVENTY-TWO
  75. SEVENTY-THREE
  76. SEVENTY-FOUR
  77. Suggested topics for reading-group discussion
  78. Keep Reading …
  79. Lisa Stone also writes under the name of Cathy Glass.Don’t miss her latest book …
  80. About the Author
  81. Books by Lisa Stone
  82. About the Publisher

She stopped and stared in disbelief as a little further up Chris and a woman stepped from the woods onto the track. It must have been them she’d heard. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart as Tinder ran to Chris. Dressed similarly in boots and waxed jackets, they continued towards her.

‘Fancy seeing you here,’ Chris said stiffly, and bent to ruffle Tinder’s fur. ‘I didn’t think you liked the woods.’

‘I thought it was time to get over that,’ Jan said, equally awkward.

‘This is my friend Anne,’ Chris said, introducing his companion. ‘Anne, Camile’s lodger, Jan.’

‘Hello, pleased to meet you,’ Anne said, but her expression said something different.

Jan saw Chris looking at her. Guilt? Embarrassment? She wasn’t sure.

There was an awkward silence and then he said, ‘Oh well. We’ll let you get on with your walk. Are you heading back to the cottage now?’

‘Yes, why?’ Jan asked.

‘I just wondered. Bye, then.’

‘Bye,’ Jan replied.

She continued along the track towards Wood Lane, in the opposite direction to Chris and Anne. She didn’t look back. How embarrassing that was! And what were they doing in the woods near the back of the cottage? Chris had offered no explanation and Jan certainly wouldn’t phone or text to ask him. She felt a pang of jealousy but dismissed it. Clearly he preferred older women, for Anne must be fifty. Homely, mumsy described her, Jan thought, slightly overweight with a practical chin-length hairstyle and no make-up. Jan wondered if Anne knew Chris had taken her out the evening before. It would explain the look she’d given her.

TWENTY-EIGHT

Once safely inside the cottage, Jan poured herself a glass of water and then set about making something to eat. It was 2 p.m. and she was hungry after all the exercise. Tinder was exhausted. He flopped out on his rug by the hearth and was soon asleep. Jan took the frying pan from its hook, threw in a knob of butter and whisked some eggs for an omelette. As she worked, her thoughts returned to Chris and Anne. He was a strange one, for sure. When she’d first met him he’d seemed so upfront and uncomplicated – a what-you-saw-was-what-you-got type of bloke. Yet clearly there was another side to Chris completely, one she didn’t like. Secretive, moody, evasive. Just as well it had ended when it had.